Weapon sight



QLNHUH nuum 33-233. cm 190919863 SR June 4, 1963 H. H. MUNSEY 3,091,863

WEAPON SIGHT Filed Aug. 12, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. HERBERT/ l MU/VSE) June 4, 1963 H. H. MUNSEY 3,091,353

WEAPON SIGHT Filed Aug. 1 2, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1NVENTOR.' HERBERT H. MUNSEY United States Patent 1 3,091,863 WEAPON SIGHT Herbert H. Munsey, 192 Louvaine Drive, Kenmore, N.Y. Filed Aug. 12, 1957, Ser. No. 677,538 3 Claims. (Cl. 33-47) My invention relates to an improvement in sighting devices as may be used on shotguns, rifles, small arms or other firearms wherein aiming the weapon is done visually, with or without the use of telescopes.

The present invention is a further improvement and utilization of that shown and claimed in my US. Patent 2,706,335 and Reissue 24,313 granted May 14, 1957.

Whereas, as has been demonstrated in the prior art, there has been a continuing desire on the part of firearm manufacturers to use various methods of assisting the shooter by providing a self-illuminating bead for the sight, including use of acrylic plastics containing luminescent dyes; none had been so devised and constructed as to receive wide public use and acceptance until the advent of my earlier invention referred to. It is, however, desirable toprovide even greater simplicity of construction and flexibility in use of such sights; particularly as same may be used on weapons by people desiring to meet diflerent field conditions with different type beads. Accordingly, the following are objectives of the present invention.

A primary objective of my invention is to provide a sight base and bead mounting arrangement which may be adapted to any weapon barrel in a simple yet permanent fashion; yet which may use interchangeable beads according to varying field requirements or preference without use of tools or force. The beads referred to may be of the post, triangular or round dot types, and of any color variations as may be available and preferred. Also, such beads may be constructed of material, such as plastic, metal, or combinations thereof.

A further object of my invention is to permit a sight bead construction of exceedingly simple yet rugged characteristics which can be readily mounted properly by any gun owner without assistance of a gunsmith, and which will provide the flexibility referred to.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sight mount arrangement wherein the bead proper may be manually changed at will in the field or on the range, invariably with accurately positioned results.

A further object of my invention is to provide a simple locking and holding member for the bead which will not only protect the bead against normal handling damage, but will also assure positive retention of same in the ramp or holding mount against accidental loosening or loss.

Further objects and advantages of my invention will be readily apparent from the following specification.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a gun barrel with a portion broken away and showing in section a sight and mounting arrangement of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1, but showing the bead locking and holding means depressed and the bead, per se, in partly inserted position in the mount;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary section, taken along line IIIIII of FIG. 1, showing the bead to be of triangular cross section form;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to FIG. 3, but showing use of a rounded bead form;

FIG. 5 similarly illustrates by means of a fragmentary cross sectional view use of the post type bead in an ar rangement of the present invention, as may be preferred for certain purposes;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross sectional view of the spring loaded bead locking and holding member as seen along line VI-VI of FIG. 1;

3,091,863 Patented June 4, 1963 ice FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 of another form of the bead retention member; and

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary plan view of the sight and mount arrangement of FIG. 1.

My invention broadly contemplates construction of a sight which is adapted to be mounted on the forward end of a weapon barrel 1 which has been suitably tapped or otherwise formed to receive the sight base 2, held in position thereon as by means of flush-fitted screws 3-3. The sight base 2 is bored and counter-bored as indicated at 4 to accommodate the bead locking and holding member 5, which is hat-shaped having a central bore within which a compression spring 6 is inserted and carried.

It is thus readily apparent that when the sight base 1 is readied for mounting, the locking and holding member 5, with the spring 6 inserted therein, may be slipfitted into the receiving bore 4 of the sight base 2 so that the bottom flange of the locking and holding member 5 abuts against the shoulder of the bore 4 with substantially more than half of the spring 6 extending outwardly from the center of the locking and holding member 5. Thus, when the assembly is afflxed to the barrel 1, as by means of the screws 3, the outwardly extending end of the spring 6 compresses against the top of the barrel 1, while the opposite end of said spring forces the locking and holding member 5, to the position shown in FIG. 1. However, said locking and holding member may be manually depressed against the tension spring 6 as to the position shown in FIG. 2 for purposes of mounting or dismounting the bead, as will be described hereinafter.

As shown in the drawing, the top portion of the sight base 2 is keystone slotted as indicated at 7 longitudinally thereof to receive the bead 8; said apertured portiori having overhanging longitudinal sides which may be swaged, keyed or otherwise undercut to provide a slideway 7 within which the bead 8 may be slidably positioned. It will be understood that the exposed upper portion of the bead may be of any configuration, such as shown in FIGS. 3, 4, 5; and that the base thereof will be formed to mate the angle of the keyway 7, as well as its length; thus providing for ready interchangeability of beads of various forms as hereinabove referred to. Hence, when the bead is mounted said keyway provides means for holding the bead against transverse or vertical movements relative to the sight base 2.

As the head 8 is slidably inserted as mentioned immediately above, it passes over the locking and holding member 5 which has been previously depressed manually against the spring 6 as shown in FIG. 2. When completely inserted in operative position the bead S is at the position shown in FIG. 1, whereupon the locking and holding means 5., moves into its upwardly and extended position as shown in FIG. 1 in response to the action of spring 6; thus effectively prohibiting any backward linear movement of the bead 8, until such time as it may be completely depressed again. Hence, any number of alternatively usable beads of a large variety of forms and materials may be carried into the field by the gun owner and interchangeably mounted on the gun barrel as field conditions vary, with maximum ease and facility and convenience to the user. The locking and holding means 5 may be of the form as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 6 or of the form as shown in FIG. 7; the only requirement being that it have a bottom flange to abut the shoulder of the bore within the member 2 for maintaining the assembly operative.

It will be appreciated that while only a few alternative embodiments of my invention have been described and shown herein, that further variations will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art such as may be preferable to their individual manufacturing and use requirements; and that such variables may be used without departing from either the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A weapon sight comprising a sight base having an inner surface adapted to rest flush against a weapon, an outer surface provided with a longitudinal groove closed at one of its ends and open at its opposite end, and a transverse passage extending through said base in substantial alignment with the open end of the groove, the diameter of the outer end portion whereof being shorter than the diameter of the inner end portion to thereby create a shoulder between said end portions of the passage, a retaining member mounted for reciprocation in and adapted to slideably fill the outer end portion of said passage, said retaining member having an outstanding flange at its inner end slideably filling the inner end portion of the passage, and a coil spring disposed between the inner end of the retainer and the weapon to normally project the outer end of the retainer across the open end of the groove and the flange of the retainer into abutment with the shoulder of the passage.

2. A weapon sight comprising a sight base having an inner surface adapted to rest flush against a weapon, an outer surface provided with a longitudinal groove closed at one of its ends and open at its opposite end, and a transverse passage between said surfaces in substantial alignment with the open end of the groove, the diameter of the outer end portion whereof being smaller than the diameter of the inner end portion to thereby create a shoulder between said end portions of the passage, a hollow retaining member closed at its outer end and open at its inner end, mounted to reciprocatingly fill the reduced outer end portion of said passage and being circumscribed by an outstanding flange at its open inner end with its surface to rest in flush contact with the barrel of a weapon and an opposed outer surface provided with a longitudinal groove closed at one of its ends and open at its opposite end, said sight base having a transverse passage through it in substantial alignment with the open end of said groove the outer end portion of which has a smaller diameter than its inner end portion thereby establishing a lateral shoulder medially of the length of the passage, a hollow cylindrical retaining member mounted for close reciprocation in the outer end portion of said passage, and having an outer end wall normal to the axis of such member, an

outstanding flange circumscribing the open inner end of the retaining member having its periphery in close, free sliding contact with the Wall of the inner end portion of said passage, and a spring mounted in said retaining member with one extremity in abutment with the end wall thereof and its opposite end in engagement with said barrel to normally project the retaining member across the open end of the aforesaid groove and dispose the flange thereof against the shoulder in said passage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 469,068 Simmons Feb. 16, 1892 858,524 Marble July 2, 1907 2,029,977 Anderson Feb. 4, 1936 2,645,017 Haase July 14, 1953 

1. A WEAPON SIGHT COMPRISING A SIGHT BASE HAVING AN INNER SURFACE ADAPTED TO REST FLUSH AGAINST A WEAPON, AN OUTER SURFACE PROVIDED WITH A LONGITUDINAL GROOVE CLOSED AT ONE OF ITS ENDS AND OPEN AT ITS OPPOSITE END, AND A TRANSVERSE PASSAGE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID BASE IN SUBSTANTIAL ALIGNMENT WITH THE OPEN END OF THE GROOVE, THE DIAMETER OF THE OUTER END PORTION WHEREOF BEING SHORTER THAN THE DIAMETER OF THE INNER END PORTION TO THEREBY CREATE A SHOULDER BETWEEN SAID END PORTIONS OF THE PASSAGE, A RETAINNG MEMBER MOUNTED FOR RECIPROCATION IN AND ADAPTED TO SLIDABLY FILL THE OUTER END PORTION OF SAID PASSAGE, SAID RETAINING MEMBER HAVING AN OUTSTANDING FLANGE AT ITS INNER END SLIDEABLY FILLING THE INNER END PORTION OF THE PASSAGE, AND A COIL SPRING DISPOSED BETWEEN THE INNER END OF THE RETAINER AND THE WEAPON TO NORMALLY PROJECT THE OUTER END OF THE RETAINER ACROSS THE OPEN END OF THE GROOVE AND THE FLANGE OF THE RETAINER INTO ABUTMENT WITH THE SHOULDER OF THE PASSAGE. 